by Glenn Koenig, Dancing-Data
Call it borrowing or call it piracy, I've lost count of the people I've encountered who were using computer software they didn't purchase themselves. Clearly software licensing has been a controversial subject for some time now, but here is an interesting perspective. The conversation below is a composite, based on a number of real conversations I have had, and perhaps others have had, on this topic.
Consultant: Ok, it looks as if we're going to have to re-install some of your software now that we've fixed this disk problem. Where are the CDs and instructions?
Client: We have some of them here. Somebody gave us Microsoft Word™ so we don't have that one.
Consultant: Well, I can't go any further without the disks for that. How come you didn't buy it?
Client: Well, it's so expensive! We're a non-profit and we can't afford it. Anyway, Microsoft makes plenty of money already.
Consultant: Well, perhaps, but by doing that, you actually helped Microsoft keep their hold on the market and maintain their high prices.
Client: What? That's impossible!
Consultant: No, it's very possible. Consider the following. You have $100 and you need a word processor. Microsoft Word costs much more than that. You could buy a less expensive product for, say, $99. But you didn't do that, you just installed someone else's copy of Word instead. So what did you do with the $99?
Client: I, well, ...
Consultant: You kept it for other expenses, right? But that's not the point. The point is that the company that makes the $99 word processing software, no matter how good it is, lost out. Their product stayed on the shelf. They're the ones that got hurt, not Microsoft. If enough people copy Word instead of buying what they can afford, that little software company goes out of business because you were willing to steal Word.
Client: Well, I wouldn't call it stealing, exactly.
Consultant: Well, what would you call it, exactly?
Client: That's not fair, we're a non-profit! We have a mission and our resources are very limited.
Consultant: Ok, and your mission is to help others, right? But by starving out the little software company, there's no one left to compete with Microsoft. As a result, Microsoft can charge as much as they want. Honest people are stuck in a bind; they either pay Microsoft's high prices or go without. Even worse, there are no alternatives to Microsoft's products. If people don't like the way their software is designed, they have no choices left. So you're helping some people but you're taking it out on others.
Client: So what do we do now?
Consultant: You figure out your software budget at the same time as you figure out your budget for hardware. Don't just think, "Oh, we're going to buy a new computer and it's only $799!" You sit down and do some research into what products are available and you make a plan. Maybe you try some demo versions to see what software does the job and is easy for your employees to use. Talk to others who have tried other products. Then you get what you need at a price you can afford and everyone comes out a winner.
Of course, non-profits aren't the only ones that can benefit from this philosophy. The temptation and rationalizations to steal software need to be faced everywhere, whether you are in a small business, a start-up, a political campaign, or wherever you are where software is used. The truth is, not all the small software companies are gone. At least not yet. Your mission is to go out there and find them, evaluate what they have to offer, and make your choices. After all, it pays to support diversity. Monopolies eventually stifle innovation and then everyone loses.
(note: this article is copyright by Glenn C. Koenig, 2003. You may copy and distribute it in its entirety but please include my name at the top which credits me as the author.)